Author: The Manna Chef

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Wrapped up in Gratitude

The Manna Chef

Sisters, as we approach the end of another year, I want to encourage you to start your gratitude list for 2022.  As many of you know, I no longer make New Year resolutions.  Many years ago, God instructed me to make a “Gratitude List” instead, so that I would not be weighed down a few months into the new year—when I realized that I was not checking things off that extensive list.  

You know how we do: we work out and eat healthy for a few weeks. We try to develop a pattern of good habits or commit to mastering something new. We are determined to make real life changes, too, except that those changes barely make it through January and February, because in the middle of all of those great plans, life happens.

So, I want to offer you a whole new perspective. I encourage you to close out the year in gratitude. And instead of giving yourself a list of things to determine your success for the upcoming year, open your heart to the possibilities that God has waiting just for you!! Doesn’t that sound liberating?

For the next several days, I want you to set aside some time to simply reflect on God’s goodness to you throughout this year and make a list.  And, yes, I do mean an actual list, whether you type it or write it.

Let me get you started:

Gratitude List for 2022

I will praise You, Lord, with all my heart; I will tell of all the marvelous things You have done. (Psalm 9:1 NLT)

(Now start listing the wonderful things that God has done for you in 2022!)

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Be Grateful for What Is

The Manna Chef

Sisters, why do we allow ourselves to find comfort in dysfunction?  As I was having a conversation recently, it occurred to me that we spend an awful lot of time thinking about how things used to be, longing for those things and people who were not good to or for us.  We sometimes decide that although a situation (or job or relationship—you get the picture) is less than desirable, at least we know how to function in it; we know how to navigate through that chaos. 

Let me say this right now—you were not designed to just exist in dysfunction.  You were designed to thrive as you walk into your destiny.  Sisters, it’s time to take that leap and walk into freedom.  You can choose to stop longing for what was and flourish in what is while you manifest what will be!

We are not so different from the children of Israel.  In Numbers 11:4-6 (NKJV), they had gotten tired of the manna God had provided and found themselves longing for what they ate while they were in Egypt.  Mind you, they were enslaved in Egypt, but here they were longing to be back with their oppressors. 

Now the mixed multitude who were among them yielded to intense craving; so the children of Israel also wept again and said: “Who will give us meat to eat?  We remember the fish which we ate freely in Egypt, the cucumbers, the melons, the leeks, the onions, and the garlic; but now our whole being is dried up; there is nothing at all except this manna before our eyes!”

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Lessons from the Fall

The Manna Chef

For a righteous man may fall seven times
And rise again, But the wicked shall fall by calamity. (Proverbs 24:16 NKJV)

Sisters, I want to encourage you to step out of your comfort zone, even if it means you fall.  That may sound a little weird, but I want you to step out and allow yourself to experience something beyond what you could have ever imagined.  Step out of the familiar.  Go ahead, Sisters, take that leap!

I recently joined a pretty exclusive club:  those who have fallen off a horse!  Yes, Sisters, I fell, and it was glorious!!  It was one of the best rides I’ve ever been on!  And before I go any further, let me say this right now:  find something that you LOVE and commit to doing it this month, whatever it is that brings you joy and peace. 

Horseback riding is something that I’ve come to love.  It’s a private moment with me and God as He allows me to bond with one of His most beautiful creatures.  Riding has become like therapy for me—I can get away from it all and fully immerse myself in nature.  So, I try to go pretty regularly.

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What’s on Your Tree?

The Manna Chef

For a good tree does not bear bad fruit, nor does a bad tree bear good fruit. For every tree is known by its own fruit. For men do not gather figs from thorns, nor do they gather grapes from a bramble bush.

(Luke 6:43-44 NKJV)

If a tree is known by its fruit, I wonder, “What kind of fruit are you bearing, Sister?”  It’s a question worth examining today, because there is so much going on around us.  We know that we reap what we sow, which makes it paramount that we sow good seeds to produce good fruit.  Galatians 5:22-23 (NKJV) reminds us of the kind of fruit that God is expecting us to produce:

But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control.  Against such there is no law. 

This, Sister, is what the Lord is looking for in our lives.  We should produce His attributes in our lives, and we should produce them consistently.  If a tree is known by its fruit, then we must be careful about what we are producing (if we really do desire to reflect the image of our Heavenly Father).  If I sow in anger, frustration, and chaos, I cannot blame God or anyone else for the result because I have chosen to not exhibit His fruit.  It’s an everyday process too.  You have opportunities to sow daily, and there is a great deal of responsibility in each choice.  But, Sister, there are also great opportunities for the manifestation of blessings from your obedience in sowing what pleases the Father.

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Think About What You’re Thinking About

The Manna Chef

For a moment, I want you think about the many things that occupy your mind on any given day.  Sisters, we are being bombarded with negativity every single day.  You can’t even escape it right now.  Just turn on the television and you’ll hear about a tragedy that is unfolding in real time.  There are negative stories and negative images everywhere; just look at your social media feed.  We are constantly hearing about inflation, violence and war, gas prices, and supply chain issues.  It’s no wonder people are fighting depression and are consumed in discouragement.  There is so much negativity that you have to constantly ask God to renew your mind.

I’ve found it necessary to limit the amount of negative information I take in on a daily basis.  I ask the Holy Spirit to filter out those things that would weigh heavily on my spirit or that would create negative energy in me.  So sometimes it means that I have to turn the television off and choose to not watch the news because there are moments when it’s all just too much.  I have to be intentional because if I take in too much negativity, my thoughts can be shaped before I even realize it.  I am a “glass half-full” kind of girl, so when I think of a “glass half-empty” thought or say something negative, the Holy Spirit checks me immediately.  That mentality doesn’t line up with who I really am. 

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